Too Much Coffee

Using large basket and twin spout portafilter. Don't want to overfill basket in case I damage shower screen. If I grind fine enough it will choke machine for a few seconds ... then channels. Will try again.

I live 8 miles outside Grimsby, that about 45 mins from Scunthorpe. Think an experienced eye would probably spot problem/s so would be really gratefull if you could call in sometime .. if its not too far out!

Thanks again .... John

I'll be happy to let you know when I'm next in the area, John. Should be quite soon. Drop me an email at the phil at tmc email addy (expanding the abbreviation, of course) so that I can contact you directly.

Best

Phil

Hi Phil ... sent my details to <email address edited out to save phil from even worse spamming> so hope you get it ok.

Have just had another attempt at choking the machine with too fine a grind .. same results, channels after few secs producing lovely shot of ditch water. Any other suggestions would be welcome.

Regards ... John

Do you have preinfusion switched on? I believe that you can disable it on these machines and if it's off you're more likely to get channelling. Apparently preinfusing the puck swells the coffee grounds to create a more even bed before the high pressure hits the puck.

To be honest I have no idea if pre-infusion is on or off .... takes about 5 secs before coffee starts extracting so assume pre-infusion is on (is it switchable on the L'Anna?)

It is switchable on the fully auto L'adri and I think the L'anna and the L'adri are basically the same machine. However, I don't know if you can disable it on the semi-auto version. It's unlikely to have been disabled anyway, but it was another straw to clutch at!

The hand fill doesn't have pre infusion as there is not enough room on the main board for that facility.

You can disable it on versions that do have it.

Correct. There is no pre-infusion on the hand fill version.

Maybe lack of preinfusion not helping. Now finding if I turn machine off between shots there's less channeling so maybe its overheating the Hx circuit?!? Its a fully auto hand fill machine. There was/is little data available on L'Anna specs so this is all news to me. The plot thickens (unlike my crema)

If you are worried about overheating, most HX machines need a cooling flush (aka "blank shots") pulling if water has sat in the HX (machine not pulling a shot) for more than 3 to 4 minutes, sometimes 6 to 8 fluid ounces. My machine isn't HX so someone else can say more about this. If you pull a shot of 4 fluid ounces (or the size of 2 doubles) with no PF in place at the same delay after your previous shot as normal, does the water steam or bubble on exit? Can you try pulling the shot just after a "blank" shot like this and see if it helps?

If it helps, try different length blank shots before each real shot and see which works best.

Cheers,

Hugh

I am sure Phil will resolve your queries when he has a look for you Paul

It does steam from Group Head after sitting idle for more than 5 mins, its often idle for a couple of hours or so. In order to stop it steaming (and frothing the coffee on extraction) I have to purge about 10 fl oz through it. This seems ridiculous when I'm only looking to espress a couple of ounces for the coffee. I've reduced the channeling to the point where most of the shot is ok, even get the 'mouses tails' for a few secs ... so getting nearer. Looking forward to Phil having a look, in the meantime I'm switching off between coffee's.

Regards ........... John

Ours is on all day. You must remember this is a commercial machine designed for constant use not the odd cup in a domestic environment. It will produce excellent shots but the pay off is the flush. You can either continue to flush 10oz (you will have to flush around 4 oz minimum whatever you do) or consider reducing the brew temperature by reducing the boiler pressure.

Do you actually have steam emitting from the group head whilst the machine is idle, or do you mean when it is used after being idle for any amount of time that there is a lot of steam (from the bubbling water)?

No steam when idle, just bubbling water when using the machine which i suspect is not helping the channeling. What is the downside of reducing boiler temp/pressure? ... seems like the next thing for me to try?

I've registered now with username johnca

Thanks again ...... John

No down side. You can easily adjust it back. If you go too cool, the espresso might taste sour. Too hot and it is bitter. You will be able to taste if it is right.